Prepare to trade the rule book for high-flying showmanship.
Street basketball returns to form in this terrific sequel with a
set of on-court tricks that would make even the Harlem
Globetrotters envious.

A Street Challenge mode is the biggest drawcard. Your rookie
starts out with two equally inexperienced players and over the
course of a 10-week road trip your team accepts various
invitational challenges.

Along the way, you can recruit better players including famous
NBA and Street Legends. Dunk Contests are a fun new challenge, too.
One at a time, players attempt slam-dunks to see who can perform
most tricks while in the air. It's made even more enjoyable thanks
to the new Trick Stick feature. Moving the right stick in different
directions lets you perform both mid-air tricks and offensive
ground moves.

Powerful Gamebreakers are back. Once your on-court finesse fills
the Gamebreaker bar, you can pull off near-impossible shots. A
successful score notches up your tally and takes a point off the
other team. The move now includes the ability to use tricks and
involve other players to increase the combo score.

The game has never looked better with easily recognisable pro
players and vividly detailed courts. But where this latest
instalment excels is in enhanced options and customisation for
serious fans, while still offering pick-up-and-play access for
those after a quick sporting fix.

Endgame: A solid update of new features and
refined controls make this the one to own for arcade-style
basketball.

Constantine

Runs on: PS2, PC, Xbox

Price: $99.95

Classification: MA15+

Rating: * * ½

Lifted from the pages of DC Comics' Hellblazer series and based
on the Hollywood makeover, this supernatural thriller follows a
rogue demon hunter. An abridged version of the Keanu Reeves movie
plays out as a third-person adventure wrapped in spiritual
mythology and packed with gun-swinging action.

Cast as mystic detective and part-time exorcist John
Constantine, you move between present-day Los Angeles and a
demon-filled city.

Your actions in one world affect the other and certain tasks are
achievable only in particular realms, introducing a puzzle-solving
element to the game. But, disappointingly, most puzzles become
chores rather than challenges, offering little to test the
mind.

Players spend most time battling hordes of dark minions and boss
creatures and, thankfully, this is rewarding. An assortment of
spiritually enhanced weapons becomes available, including a
dragon-breath flame-thrower and holy water bombs.

Spells can also be cast as a defence and you can perform
exorcisms. But, again, these are overly simplified, requiring easy
button combinations. You can also use supernatural vision called
True Sight. When activated, the view changes from above the
character to first-person, revealing secret areas and puzzle clues.
Targeting adversaries is more effective in this traditional view
for shooting games.

A mix of detailed cut scenes and graphically pleasing levels
helps move the adventure along, but cannot cover up what is
essentially a derivative and straightforward action game hanging
its hopes on a movie licence.

Endgame: Lack of new ideas prevents Constantine
from having lasting appeal.

Revheads rejoice. V8 Supercars 2005 will roar onto PC, PS2 and
Xbox in October. A demanding new Pro Career mode will let drivers
tackle a variety of racing styles, including touring cars, rally
and Formula 1.

Australians might have to wait until September for Sony's PSP.
Sources tell us the handheld machine's popularity in Japan and the
US is making it difficult for the electronics giant to keep up with
demand, delaying the Australian launch.

One of the best Xbox games of 2004 is coming soon to PC,
complete with new missions, greater customisation and enhanced
visuals. Fable: The Lost Chapters is expected in spring.

Marvel Nemesis will let comic book fans battle superheroes such
as Spider-Man, Wolverine and The Thing against all-new characters
designed by Electronic Arts. The fighting game will be released on
PS2, Xbox, GameCube and PSP before Christmas.

Ubisoft is working on sequels to Splinter Cell and Prince of
Persia for PC and consoles. It also plans to release Ghost Recon 3
for the new Xbox before February, all but confirming industry talk
about Microsoft's plans to release the Xbox successor before
Christmas.

Mission: Paintball is a plug-and-play gun game that is more
like a shooting gallery than a paintball park. It is reasonably
cheap fun at $70, with the gun plugging directly into your TV, but
graphics are primitive compared to PS2 and Xbox titles.

Cheat of the Week Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath (Xbox) - to select
any level, start a new game and enter the following as your player
name: (c)@(r)& - Jason Hill